Senior Practitioner - Family Time Service in Milton Keynes

Location: Family Time Service, 135 Jonathans, Coffee Hall, Milton Keynes

Contract Type: Permanent Full time

Working Hours: 37

Closing Date: 16/08/2026

Job Category: Children's Services

Service Area: Children's Services- Social Work - Family Support Teams

Package Description

• Great holiday benefits - most roles include 28 days annual leave every year on top of public (bank) holidays, increasing to 32 days after five years. In addition, there is a holiday purchase scheme allowing staff to purchase up to 5 additional days of leave each year.
• Excellent pension - everyone who works for us can join the national Local Government Pension Scheme, widely regarded as one of the best available.
• A full range of family friendly policies including enhanced maternity, adoption and paternity support.
• Access to an award-winning employee benefits programme that includes a health cash plan, a low-cost bike purchase scheme as well as high street discounts and money off entertainment and travel.
• Salary sacrifice car scheme - eligible employees can lease an electric or low-emission vehicle at a reduced cost through salary sacrifice, subject to National Minimum Wage and other eligibility requirements.
• Blue Light Card - employees working within social care can qualify for an additional range of discounts from national retailers and local businesses.

Job Introduction

We’re recruiting a Senior Social Worker to join our specialist Parent Assess function within Children’s Services. Our team provides expert assessments that help inform care planning and court decisions, supporting children, young people and families when they need us most. This role is dedicated to undertaking specialist parenting assessments for parents with learning disabilities, parents with significant mental health needs, and young parents who require tailored assessment approaches.

The Parent Assess Social Worker post was advertised at Level 3 but failed to attract appointable candidates. The post is a full-time specialist assessment position undertaking parenting assessments for parents with learning disabilities, significant mental health needs, and young parents requiring tailored assessment approaches. Given the complexity of the work, the need for advanced assessment skills, and the requirement to provide robust evidence for court and care planning purposes, the role is more appropriately aligned to a Senior Social Worker level.

Site-Based role

This is a Site-Based role, and you’ll be expected to work from the designated workplace. Interviews for this role will be held on 24th August 2026.

At Milton Keynes City Council, we aim to make a difference every day. We’re dedicated, respectful and collaborative. We act as one council, and we work hard to create cleaner, safer and healthier communities while tackling inequalities and supporting people to thrive.

Key Responsibilities

• Deliver high-quality specialist parenting assessments for families with complex needs, producing clear evidence to support care planning and court proceedings.
• Lead on the most demanding and sensitive assessments to improve the safety, development and wellbeing of children and young people.
• Work collaboratively to build effective relationships with colleagues, partner agencies and other Children’s Services teams.
• Provide expert guidance and professional support to social work colleagues, sharing knowledge and helping to maintain high standards of practice.
• Take responsibility for preparing court statements, care plans and professional evidence in complex legal proceedings.
• Contribute to service improvement by supporting quality assurance activities, sharing learning and helping to develop best practice.

Ideal Candidate

• A qualified Social Worker registered with Social Work England and holding a recognised social work qualification.
• You bring significant experience of undertaking complex assessments and managing challenging family situations.
• Your ability to communicate clearly, analyse information and present evidence confidently will help you succeed in this role.
• Experience in working with children and families where learning disabilities, mental health needs or other complex factors are present would be highly valued.
• A strong understanding of legislation, safeguarding practice and child welfare issues is essential.
• Confidence when working in demanding situations and making well-informed decisions will support positive outcomes for children and families.
• Experience of completing Parent Assess assessments, or Parent Assess training, would be beneficial but is not essential.
• Full UK Driving Licence and access to a vehicle.

To be successful in this role, you’ll need a full UK driving licence and access to a vehicle. If we offer you the role, we’ll ask you to provide evidence of your driving licence and vehicle insurance, including cover for business use. We’re unable to confirm an appointment until these documents are received. As part of the pre-employment checks, should you be offered the role, we’ll carry out an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, (unless you are currently registered with the DBS Update Service).

About The Organisation

Milton Keynes City Council is a large, modern and financially stable employer with around 2,500 people working across our eight areas. Together we provide local residents and businesses with a wide range of important round-the-clock services and aim to make our city a better place to live. We work hard because of the demands placed on us, like protecting children from harm or preventing homelessness. However, working for the city is always rewarding and everyone has the opportunity to make a real difference. We’re very proud of our diversity and are committed to having a workforce that reflects the community we serve. Whatever your background, you will be welcome here if you share our values of being dedicated, respectful and collaborative. We offer great training and support and because of the size and scale of the organisation there are always new opportunities to explore when it’s time for a new role.